“This is the sixth or seventh ‘unbeatable’ team we’ve faced, but we had the right attitude throughout the game,” he told Sky Sport Italia.

“We defended strongly in the first half and were more aggressive after the break, putting Inter under pressure.”

The Nerazzurri did precious little to test the Amaranto other than a Bardi own goal, which he fumbled into his own net, and a YutoNagatomo strike in stoppages.

“Bardi doesn’t brood on mistakes and that is the best quality for a goalkeeper. He was brave to intercept that cross and sometimes the ricochet can take you by surprise.

“We had to change our organisation, as we knew Mazzarri’s sides are very strong on the counter-attack, so didn’t want to allow them any spaces for that.

“It’s a shame we conceded like that, as we could’ve gone into the break on 0-0 with Inter having few real chances to hurt us. They didn’t create any big risks for us in that first half.

“I had prepared to raise the centre of the team and put more pressure on after the break, but we didn’t get the final pass right on a few occasions.”

Livorno gathered in the centre-circle after the final whistle to have an impromptu team meeting.

“Last season we started having that huddle after the game, to get a sense of those immediate feelings of what happened in the heat of the moment. They are just a few words, but are good for the players.

“I said we ought to be aware this was an important step forward in our approach against teams that are undeniably stronger and with more quality.”